Offers a rationale for studying the impact of school culture on school leadership, arguing that practical and academic grounds support a focus on societal culture in leadership studies, contending that management of people and organizations is a socially constructed process, and suggesting that since social culture influences values and norms…

Introduces a theme issue that focuses on the vulnerability thesis as it relates to public-school superintendents and what that means for superintendent-education programs and the practice of school supervision. The issue is designed to reexamine earlier work by Callahan (1962) and indicate where others have misread, misinterpreted, and misused…

Reexamines Callahan's book, "Education and the Cult of Efficiency" (1962), and his vulnerability thesis regarding school superintendents, discussing recommendations it made and highlighting public education in the 1990s. Callahan's recommendations were well-received but not well-heeded, and the vulnerability thesis did not provide the…

Based on extensive historical research spanning three decades, this paper discusses the influence of Callahan's vulnerability thesis on thought and practice in shaping school administration, and the resulting influence in other disciplines. Though the relevance of the vulnerability thesis and reactions to it will continue to evolve, Callahan has…

Examined Callahan's vulnerability thesis to determine its ability to explain the mobility of superintendents in Texas between 1985 and 1990. Questionnaire and interview data indicated that, at least in Texas where superintendent mobility reached 50% in that time period, vulnerability did not appear to account for much of superintendent mobility.…

Two studies investigated the involuntary turnover of small-town school superintendents. The studies involved interviewing county superintendents and examining state financial records from Illinois. Results indicated that it was personal and political conflicts that most often dictated the high superintendent turnover (both voluntary and…

In examining the issue of the vulnerability of school superintendents, the paper suggests that humankind itself is vulnerable and, as such, requires that all individuals present themselves in the social world as vulnerable. Thus, the perception of the school superintendent as vulnerable may be an important aspect of survival in that office, but it…

Summarizes the viability of the vulnerability thesis as a tool in accounting for school superintendent behavior today, suggesting how the thesis can be built on in order to better understand the political world of superintendency. The paper suggests some social and political theories that might extend the thesis, further clarifying the…

In discussing school superintendent vulnerability, the paper addresses diverse meanings among scholars of Callahan's vulnerability thesis, highlighting other articles within this theme issue. The paper reflects on discussions of Callahan's "Education and the Cult of Efficacy" before its 1962 publication and investigates the relation…

This paper wraps up a theme issue on Callahan's vulnerability thesis (as related to school superintendents), which was presented in his 1962 book, Education and the Cult of Efficiency. The paper examines the various authors' points of view and focuses on the concept of inquiry and its importance and power in education. (SM)

Describes the establishment and work of the Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development at the Peabody College of Vanderbilt University, presenting an overview of this theme issue, which highlights Kennedy Center contributions, roots of the Kennedy Center, and ongoing research at the Kennedy Center. Two appendixes list Kennedy Center…

Describes the work of the John F. Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development, which for three decades has promoted interdisciplinary research on developmental disabilities. The paper describes how the Kennedy Center is an integral part of both the educational community and the surrounding civic community at the Peabody College of Vanderbilt…

President Kennedy helped fulfill his vision of research on and attention to mental retardation by creating the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the President's Panel on Mental Retardation. The President's Panel helped create Mental Retardation Research Centers (MRRCs). Peabody College of Vanderbilt University's Kennedy…

The Kennedy Center at Peabody College of Vanderbilt University is one of 12 Mental Retardation Research Centers (MRRCs) constructed by the federal government. Several major discoveries in mental retardation have come from MRCCs. The Kennedy Center is unique in its focus on education integrated with a university and medical school environment,…

Susan Gray and Nicholas Hobbs were influential in the development of the Kennedy Center at Peabody College of Vanderbilt University, which was designed to include an emphasis on research and training in education and human development. This paper describes Gray's and Hobbs' work and explains how their vision extended to the creation of the Kennedy…